Mutual Insurers’ Group Offers Wildfire Precautions

As much of California was placed under a “fire warning” Wednesday amid a recent outbreak of wildfires, the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies is advising residents in the state on what they can do to minimize their risk should fires break out where they live.

Christian Rataj, NAMIC’s state affairs manager for the Western region of the United States, says homeowners should be extra careful in light of the warnings. “In the last quarter century, wildfires in California have been a greater threat than earthquakes,” he said. “The 1991 Oakland Hills fire destroyed 2,900 structures worth more than $3.5 billion, and in 2007 nearly a million people were temporarily displaced in southern California when 23 wildfires raged simultaneously. Preparing for such disasters can minimize the risk to property and life.”

Rataj said that the threat of wildfires is highest for Californians who live in the foothills, grasslands, or mountains. “But it is not only fire that California residents need to be concerned about,” he said. “There are also secondary effects including flooding, erosion, and landslides.”